Walker Family Medicine (WFM) of Arizona has partnered with OmniMD, a leading developer of an Internet-based software solutions for healthcare organizations, to implement OmniMD’s Electronic Medical Records (EMR) and Practice Management System (PMS) at the facility.

Headquartered in New York, OmniMD is a division ofIntegrated Systems Management, Inc. (ISM), an Internet consulting and e-business development specialist. Apart from PMS and EMR software, the company’s range of products and services includes Medical Transcription, Medical Billing, and Medical Document Management.

For WFM, located in Willcox, Arizona, the partnership with OmniMD is a step towards automation of several critical processes at the busy practice. In the words of Dr. Walker (Board Certified in Family Practice), “After comparing many EMRs, I determined that OmniMD was the best software for my new clinic. I run a high volume family practice clinic with two mid-level providers. OmniMD is used for scheduling, reminder calls, medical records, insurance and patient billing. OmniMD is a critical tool for my practice. It is a very good software, but I am also very pleased with the level of service OmniMD provides with their technical support team.”

The EMR system will give WFM physicians improved access to patient medical records resulting in higher levels of productivity and improved care for the patients. Customizable templates, multiple and simultaneous access to a single chart are some of the benefits that the clinic will receive. The system will also allow quick and easy sharing of patient data between different physicians, staff, and facilities.

The implementation of the OmniMD solutions will also allow WFM to simplify the process of tracking and managing claims through the OmniMD Medical Billing System. Additionally, WFM patients will now be able to register online to manage their information, make appointments, or request an Rx refill through the OmniMD Patient Portal.

EHRScope

EHR Scope is a leader in EHR consulting and education. They offer a variety of valuable resources to help physicians and practices navigate their way through the EMR implementation process. EHR Scope includes a network of resources for EHR comparison, multimedia industry news and information vital to operating within current Healthcare legislation and guidelines for ARRA stimulus HITECH act. Check out www.ehrscope.com and www.ehrtv.com for more information.

I’m interested in patient portals, in particular. I’d be very curious to find out what percentage of your patients are using the portal, both at the beginning of the implementation, as well as over time.

I find that fewer patients use portals than would be expected. And, since they are such an incredibly cost effective method of managing an office, it would seem as if physicians would have tremendous incentive in encouraging patient use of a patient portal.

Have you come up with any methods of getting the patients on board with this type of activity?

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